Thursday, February 11, 2016

Plastic packing peanuts

Apparently, one of the possible causes for the deep drought that North America's west coast is experiencing is loss of polar ice.

Ice and snow are highly reflective. Loss of ice creates a positive feedback loop. Less ice means more absorbed solar radiation which means higher temperatures which means even less ice. Heat differences are the engine that drives weather. A smaller difference between polar temperatures and temperatures at lower latitudes reduces the size and power of that engine.

Many people talk about "out-of-the-box" thinking. The solution to this problem might actually reside in the box.

Rather than dumping expanded polystyrene into land fills, maybe we should be "seeding" it into the Arctic ocean. Expanded polystyrene is white. It is highly reflective. It floats.

See how your snobbish, knee-jerk, eco-warrior friends respond when you tell them the answer to "global warming" is more plastic. I would pay money to see their faces.

Incidentally, deserts are very reflective. The loss of agricultural lands throughout California will help diminish "global warming".

---Disclosure---

Dart Container is a local company that makes many products out of expanded polystyrene. I have a family member and several neighbors who work for them. I like to put in a good word for Dart when I can.